Echo CS 400

[automaticman]

I cut & buck a fair amount of firewood. Alot of eucalyptus. 'Got an MS 290 that works well. I'm looking at a 2nd saw, an Echo CS 400. Please give me some feedback on this. Any suggestions would help. Thanks, Phil:greenchainsaw:

 

[mountainlake]

I cut & buck a fair amount of firewood. Alot of eucalyptus. 'Got an MS 290 that works well. I'm looking at a 2nd saw, an Echo CS 400. Please give me some feedback on this. Any suggestions would help. Thanks, Phil:greenchainsaw:

With proper tuning and gutting the cat muffler you'ld find yourself using the CS400 a lot with it being a LOT lighter and the cutting speed not far behind. I have a lot of saws here and use my CS400 quite a bit in wood smaller than 10" or so. Steve

 

[o8f150]

once yo use the 400 you will put the stihl out to pasture,,,,,,,if it was me i would get the cs-530,,it cuts fast and is not much heavier then the 400, i think it is about 1 pd heavier, my 530 will cut circles around my neighbors 031 and 038

 

[PLMCRZY]

I got the cs400's little brother cs370 and its great so far. Basically the same saw but i think it has .4cc's and it comes in a 18" bar.

 

[Cliff R]

The CS370/400's are excellent limbing saws and OK cutting firewood to about 10-12" diameter. The muffler mod is optional, removing the limiter caps and giving it some fuel is MANDITORY! They are set-up quite lean from the factory. I had a 400 and sold it to one of my best friends, and still have two CS-370's that we use quite a bit here. My friend bought 14 acres of land recently timbered, and has been running the crap out of for over a year now, and loves it.

They are not fast cutting/high rpm saws, but very strong for the cc's with plenty of "grunt". The 3/8" LP will cut a lot faster than one would ever think it would. They are best suited to a 14" bar/chain set-up, which is what I run on all of mine.....Cliff

 

[automaticman]

CS 400 info

Thanks for the replies everyone. I do buck some large stumps. Maybe a bigger model would be better.

 

[mountainlake]

You're already lugging around a lot of wieght, no doubt a good 70 cc saw would be nice but I'd get that light good cutting CS400 first, around $200 new off Ebay. Steve

 

[Saw Dr.]

.... my 530 will cut circles around my neighbors 031 and 038

Was the 038 running when this happened?

 

[o8f150]

Was the 038 running when this happened?

yep,,side by side in a 16" log

 

[Saw Dr.]

yep,,side by side in a 16" log

Your neighbor needs to turn the chain around on his 038. Not saying the 530 is a bad saw, but C'mon.

I have an Echo CS-5000 in a box here that I might get around to rebuilding someday. I was plesantly surprised with the build quality of that one on everything except the chainbrake/cover. Cylinder was very good quality, and this one has a fair amount of time on it.

Also just had the chance to fool with a little cs-310 recently. Cute little saw. Probably a good alternative for the MS-170 crowd, though I have not run the 171/181 series yet.

 

[mountainlake]

Your neighbor needs to turn the chain around on his 038. Not saying the 530 is a bad saw, but C'mon.

I have an Echo CS-5000 in a box here that I might get around to rebuilding someday. I was plesantly surprised with the build quality of that one on everything except the chainbrake/cover. Cylinder was very good quality, and this one has a fair amount of time on it.

Also just had the chance to fool with a little cs-310 recently. Cute little saw. Probably a good alternative for the MS-170 crowd, though I have not run the 171/181 series yet.

Last time I did timed cuts my 044 was 19 seconds CS510 22 seconds both stock with chiesel chains just sharpened on the same grinder. I can see where a 038 with a bad chain or not tuned right might be slower. I'll take the little bit slower cut times anyday for the 5# less wieght unless I'm just blocking big wood. The last couple of Stihls that I've run were just dogs compared to my 510 a 026 and a MS290 but they weren't tuned right, had a dirty air cleaner or a clogged exhaust screen to be as bad as they were. Power wise the CS5000 is no where near the 510, 520 or 530 Echo saws. Steve

 

[Saw Dr.]

.......Power wise the CS5000 is no where near the 510, 520 or 530 Echo saws. Steve

If I ever get around to fooling with this one, it will be
probably going to be about $100 to get everything to make it right. Trying to decide if a rebuilt 50cc Echo is worth $100.

Most think all Echo's are clamshell. I did also until I stripped this 5000 down. It was very dirty, and I was looking for cylinder bolts on the bottom of the saw.

 

[mountainlake]

If I ever get around to fooling with this one, it will be
probably going to be about $100 to get everything to make it right. Trying to decide if a rebuilt 50cc Echo is worth $100.

Most think all Echo's are clamshell. I did also until I stripped this 5000 down. It was very dirty, and I was looking for cylinder bolts on the bottom of the saw.

A CS5000 when muff modded (very restrictive muffler) will cut with a 026 or 260. The 510, 520 and 530 are a clamshell with huge tranfer ports compared to the 5000. Nothing wrong with a clamshell design thats built good with closed tranferrs, simple to work on and I have tons of hours on my CS510 saws with no problems. Steve

 

[PLMCRZY]

If I ever get around to fooling with this one, it will be
probably going to be about $100 to get everything to make it right. Trying to decide if a rebuilt 50cc Echo is worth $100.

Most think all Echo's are clamshell. I did also until I stripped this 5000 down. It was very dirty, and I was looking for cylinder bolts on the bottom of the saw.

Ill take it!

 

[frogg]

i have a echo cs400 . how do you remove the limiter caps & do a muffler mod need more power.
it cus ok but does bog down

thanks, frogg

 

[mountainlake]

i have a echo cs400 . how do you remove the limiter caps & do a muffler mod need more power.
it cus ok but does bog down

thanks, frogg

Try doing a search on here, quite a bit info posted on both the muff mod and caps. I just put another CS400 together that I haven't modded the muff yet, it's a real dog compared to my muff modded one, you'll see some big gains with a muff modd and tuning. Steve

 

[kugss]

I had a cs-400 that i took the spark arrester screen and adjusted the carb and was very happy with the saw, light in weight, easy to start even on the cold days,easy to service but a little low on power but i wouldnt bat a eye at buying one again.

Dont forget there 5year warranty

 

[lawnmowertech37]

If I ever get around to fooling with this one, it will be
probably going to be about $100 to get everything to make it right. Trying to decide if a rebuilt 50cc Echo is worth $100.

Most think all Echo's are clamshell. I did also until I stripped this 5000 down. It was very dirty, and I was looking for cylinder bolts on the bottom of the saw.

You dont hear much talk on echos here do we ?

maybe they are better in the orange line up

 

[bitzer]

Save your money and buy a Stihl or Husky. Forget the Echo. Open up the muffler on the 290 and it will run like a new saw. I'd be reaching for something in the 70cc range next. Not an Echo though.

 

[mountainlake]

Save your money and buy a Stihl or Husky. Forget the Echo. Open up the muffler on the 290 and it will run like a new saw. I'd be reaching for something in the 70cc range next. Not an Echo though.

Didn't you mean buy a Stihl or Husky pro model for big bucks, the rest of thier lineup has way less qualty than Echo has and less power per cc. Steve